A Week of Farewells and My Advice for Visiting Students

Term's officially winding up the following Sunday. A lot people are starting to leave (or have left). Attended various farewell "get-togethers" in the past week with a sense of poignancy.

Dinner at Patricia's flat just before she went back home to Germany, 21st May

Celebrating Chee May's birthday at Kampong Ah Lee, 2 days before she flew to Holland! 18th May.

At Marianne's farewell cocktail party, held at Under The Stairs, 18th May. Zipped here right after cutting Chee May's cake!

Sending Martin off at Vodka Revolution, 16th May. Don't ask about all the empty shot glasses.

As for myself, I'm leaving Edinburgh for Singapore in 8 days. I'm feeling rather ambivalent about the whole thing. On one hand, the prospect of flying off so soon is scary, and I'm starting to wonder if I should've extended my stay just a little longer...

On the other hand, my philosophy has always been that all good things must and should come to an end. They cannot continue indefinitely, if not they wind up becoming draggy and routinized.

I'm also looking forward to see the people (and food) back home, and I'm keen to spend my summer break catching up with friends and re-acquainting myself with the sunny island I call home!

At this juncture, it's inevitable that I'll reflect on my exchange and start to analyze it from start to end. I'm really not the kind of person who will rhapsodize and say that my exchange was fantastic and that there was nothing about it I would change. I really genuinely enjoyed it, but at the same time, it's inevitable that there are several "I-should've-done-that's" and "I-wish-I-had's" at this stage. Several issues come into mind:

1) Choosing a Residence: If you're coming to Edinburgh for exchange, unless you're here in your first semester, I would personally advise against staying in Pollock halls. It's hard to meet people when they're mostly shut up in their rooms - most of the time, I don't see my neighbours, I just hear them (or their music).

Also consider that as a new student arriving in the second semester, it's harder to break into cliques which have already formed in the beginning of the year. Not that people here are unfriendly, but they are less likely to go all out to know you when they have already settled down in their own social groups.

I wish I had opted for a flat because I think the level of interaction would've been better. I would rather know a small handful of flatmates really well and intimately, rather than have many acquaintances in Pollock who are of the "hi," "bye," variety.

One good thing about Pollock halls is the meal plan but consider if you really value eating convenience over and above community and socializing. I was lucky to be with other Singaporean students in Pollock whom I had known beforehand, but if you don't know anyone think about it - what good is a meal plan if you're eating your meals alone in the cafeteria?

As a point of comparison, I went for a 5-week summer programme in Yale last year. The layout of the dorm was excellent as it had a common space on each floor for socializing, and the bedrooms were all organized around the common room - I got to know my 5 dorm-mates there way better in 5 weeks than I have most of neighbours for 5 months here.

So my advice is: opt for the flats. It's cheaper, the location will probably be better, and you'll have a better chance of forging closer friendships.

2) When to come: Well this is less clear-cut for me. One problem about coming in the second semester is that you arrive in the thick of winter. And being so far North, winter lasts for an unusually long time in Edinburgh. This makes going out and exploring the city a bit of a drag - during term time, I spent most of the free periods I had in between classes shut up indoors or going to places I was familiar with. Getting lost in a strange neighbourhood in the wintery cold is not an inviting prospect.

In fact, it's only recently (after Spring break) that I've been really out and about Edinburgh, and discovering all its fascinating nooks and crannies - it's not an exaggeration to say that the weather is a huge deciding factor when venturing out.

At the same time however, coming in the second semester means you get to experience a three-week long spring break, and in my case, 2 examinations spread out over 5 weeks. This is an impossible luxury in Singaporean universities where term time is hectic to put it very mildly.

I would think that most of my fellow students from Singapore would be extremely keen to incorporate some continental tour when on exchange in the UK. If so, it's a good idea to come in the second semester - you have loads more free time on your hands once lessons end in late March. And spring (I feel) is really the nicest time to travel - not too hot, not too cold and flowers will be in bloom. Just perfect :)

But if you have the option, you might want to consider a full-year exchange...although you might have a lot of catching up to do once you're back. The average workload per semester here is the equivalent of 3 courses. Back in NUS, it's 5 and some people choose to do 6 or 7. So bridging this discrepancy might be an issue, especially if you want to graduate on time.

3) Surviving and Enjoying Winter: However even if you do come in the winter like me, I'd advise you not to coop yourself indoors too much even though it's tempting to!

At the same time, I don't encourage you to put yourself at the mercy of the elements in the spirit of 'fun' - especially if you're more used to tropical climes and need time to adjust. In retrospect, I find it a little funny that my friends and I decided to do a whole bunch of outdoorsy things in the bitter cold of January - including the visit to Edinburgh castle, trekking in Roslin and walking around Glasgow.

It's tempting to get the exciting things out of the way as soon as possible, to make time for...other exciting things outside of Scotland/the UK. But after coming close to frostbite in several of our little winter 'jaunts' (Dunfermline and Roslin come to mind), I'd say it's not a bad idea to slow things down. Shift the more outdoor-oriented activities to spring-time - there's really no rush...unless you're talking about winter sports and snow fights.

But apart from that, you might want to use winter to check out nice cafes, pubs, shops, galleries and other indoorsy, chill-out spots. How about visiting a heated outdoor pool for instance? Or curling up in the filmhouse's small, intimate theatres for a good indie flick? Sampling a hot soup at Henderson's little vegetarian empire over at Hanover Street? Sprawling on the gigantic bed at the Brass Monkey pub with a beer in hand? Checking out various live music venues in town?

There are possibilities even in winter - don't let the weather restrict you too much. And at the same time, don't fight it; work with it and plan appropriate activities/ itineries to get the most out of your time.

Okay I hope I don't sound naggy! Will upload more thoughts about leaving and my exchange experience when they come to me!